The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 8 letter word OUTRANGE
I've seen this crossword clue in Financial Times
O
U
T
R
A
N
G
E
More clues leading to the result OUTRANGE
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "fire from greater distance" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case fire from greater distance = outrange.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
What does OUTRANGE mean?
OUTRANGE verb- To have a longer range than (another projectile or weapon).